Mother Earth
by Hilary Weston
Summary: There are strange happenings in a dark corner of Mars Dome one. Part 3 now up. Sorry for the delay in updating, my muse deserted me.
1. Default Chapter

_I've slipped off the front page of so I thought I'd better write something. This is an introduction to a story I'm still figuring out in my head. _

As usual, I don't own anything you recognise as from B5. All hail to JMS, the great maker.

* * *

**Mother Earth**

by

Hilary Weston

**Part 1**

The alley was dark. What lights there were in the streets were intermittent at best, and being this close to the edge of the dome, the Martian darkness seemed to suck out even those.

The young man nervously stood at the mouth of the alley, peering into the blackness of the shadows, listening for any signs of life. He had attended collage on Mars for three years and knew exactly which parts of Dome One you should avoid. The part where he was right now.

If he shouldn't be here, then the girl he had followed shouldn't either. He had spotted her a few times around campus in the last year, but had never had a reason to approach her. Tonight though, she had passed him going off campus in a hurry. Her determined stride had piqued his curiosity and he had followed. Now he was cursing that curiosity as it had led him to the worst part of the dome.

He shifted uneasily. The girl had entered the alley five minutes before, and then disappeared. He could just about make out the wall at the far end from where he stood. It was an obvious dead end, so where had she gone? Was there a door that she had gone through, or was she lying unseen in the shadows, injured?

He couldn't stand it any longer. He couldn't leave without an answer.

Stepping forward, he felt out for the walls on either side of him. Tripping over the rubbish, he stumbled to the end of the alley. There was not a single door anywhere, and he hadn't come across a body. The girl had truly disappeared!

Blowing out his breath in frustration, he turned to retrace his steps. The whole place was making him uneasy, and he intended to get back to campus, and safety, as quickly as he could.

Halfway back down the alley, he stopped short. A shadow; two shadows blocked his way. A hand of fear rose up from his stomach and squeezed his windpipe. This is exactly why they were warned against coming into this area. Desperately, he stepped forward again, trying to slip past the two figures.

He was grabbed by either arm and pushed roughly against the wall.

"Hey rich kid." One of the shadows growled next to his ear. "Do you know you are trespassing on my property?"

"No." He blurted out the feeblest excuse as panic set in. "I got lost. Can you tell me how to get back to John Carter College?"

There were twin chuckles from the dark.

"Maybe. Depends on how much you can pay us."

"My wallet's in my jacket pocket."

Another laugh.

"I wasn't thinking money."

He gulped and felt a sudden cold sweat break out on his forehead as the hands that pinned him gripped tighter.

"Oh I am sorry. Am I disturbing something?"

All three heads turned at the female voice. Standing in the middle of what had only a short time before been an empty alley, was the recognisable silhouette of the girl.

"Where did you come from?" growled one of the thugs.

"Never mind." The other chuckled. "She can be the second course. Grab her!"

The first thug moved up the alley towards the girl.

"I'm going to enjoy this." He said.

A swoosh-clunk of sliding metal echoed in the blackness.

"Oh, I don't think so."

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

**Part 2**

The darkness and confines of the alley may have hampered a lesser-trained fighter, and it was certainly the case with the thug. He never saw the blow that hit him on the side of the head. As he crumpled to the ground, the girl calmly stepped over him. 

"You were saying?" She addressed the first thug who was still holding the young man against the wall. The ruffian took one look at the long metal pole as it reflected the streetlight, then his friend on the ground, and fled. 

"Are you all right?" she asked the young man who was now shaking with fear. 

"Y..yes." he stammered. 

"Then we should leave before our friend comes back with reinforcements." She moved away, pulling the man with her. 

"But you could fight them off again, with that?" 

"Not if there were many of them. I was lucky; they were unprepared. The battle is half won before you begin to fight if you have surprise on your side." 

They were back in a safer district now and the girl closed up her pike and returned it to an inside pocket of her jacket. 

"Is that an actual Minbari fighting pike?" 

"Yes." 

Now that he was no longer in danger of being attacked, the man's brain began processing the events of the evening, but still came up confused. He looked at the girl, calmer now that they were closer to the campus. She wore jeans, T-shirt and boots; the usual student fare. Over that, she had on a gropos jacket. She was obviously too young to have fought in any wars so it must have been army surplus. Where did the pike come from? That was the one thing that didn't fit in with the otherwise perfect image of a pretty blonde student. 

Then something caught his eye. Hidden amongst the various pin badges that adorned the front of the girl's jacket, was a large ornate one with a green stone. That he did recognise. 

"Hold on." He caught hold of the girl and made her stop and face him. "That's a Ranger pin you're wearing. Are you a Ranger?" 

"No." She shifted uncomfortably, clearly not wanting to answer any more questions. 

"I'm sorry," the man said, "I'm still unnerved over tonight. I haven't even thanked you yet. I wouldn't have got away if it hadn't been for you. I'm Tim Midnight." 

He held out his hand. The girl cautiously shook it. 

"Marie Cole." 

He smiled, and was rewarded by a small smile in return. 

"Oh. You're hurt!" 

Tim looked down at his grazed knuckles, probably from being held against the wall. He hadn't even known he had done it. 

"It's nothing." 

"You should still have it cleaned. Come with me."

OoOoOoOoO

A few minutes later, Tim followed Marie into her room at the college. She threw the bag she had been carrying onto the bed and ushered him into the bathroom. As she quickly and efficiently bathed his hands with disinfectant, he tried to find out more about her. 

"So you're not a Ranger?" 

"No" 

"Where did you learn to fight?" 

"The Rangers trained me." 

"But the pike and pin?" 

"Were gifts when I left." 

"But.." 

"Do you want my life history?" Marie spat at him. 

"I…" Tim faltered. He realised he had gone too far. "Sorry. I'm taking journalism. I sometimes forget when to stop asking questions." 

Marie gave him a stony stare, then handed him a towel. 

"I'm a first year student taking Xenogeology. I don't give interviews." That last part was final. 

Tim slowly dried his hands, then returned to the main room. Marie was unpacking her bag and didn't look at him. He used the silence to look around. The room was sparse, even for a student. There were a few Minbari style decorations, a few books and three framed photos on the desk. Two were of people he didn't know, but the third had two of the most famous people in the universe. 

"You know the Sheridans?" he blurted out in astonishment, and was rewarded with another angry glare. 

"Sorry." Tim held up his hands in defeat. "No more questions about you." He put on his best hang dog expression. 

Marie sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to snap. It's just that at the beginning of the year, whenever I told anyone where I came from, they kept asking questions; about the Rangers, Sheridan, Delenn, the civil war, the battle with the Drakh. I got tired of telling the same stories and I felt that people only wanted to know about who I had met and not about me. I did not have the happiest of childhoods and all I want now is to be a perfectly ordinary student and enjoy university life. Is there something wrong with that?" 

"Nothing." Tim kept his hands up. "Shall we start again? This time you can ask the questions." 

Marie laughed at his posture. "You can put your hands down. Would you like some tea?"

OoOoOoOoO

"So how come you needed to be rescued?" 

They were sitting at the table in the kitchen of the student's accommodation. Marie held her mug in both hands, savouring the warmth before she drunk the beverage. Tim sipped at his tea before answering. 

"The truth, if you promise not to knock me out, is that I followed you." 

Marie frowned slightly, but continued her questioning. 

"Why?" 

"I was curious. I wanted to know where you were going in such a hurry." Tim paused, "And I have to write an original piece of journalism for my final project and I'm completely stumped." 

Marie studied the man sitting across from her. There was nothing obvious in his attitude that warned her off. She still didn't know enough about him to trust him completely, but his actions that night had shown some courage. They could probably help each other out. 

Plus, he had a nice smile. 

"I might have a story for you." Marie began. "I have been helping a family, the Walkers, Mother and two children. They live next to that alley. When the Drakh attacked Earth they had been here on holiday, whilst the husband remained at home. After the quarantine, they were stranded. With no relatives and little work, they have been reduced to living in a single room without power." 

"What about the husband. Can't he help?" Tim wasn't convinced, but he was interested. 

"Earth is almost bankrupt itself. He cannot afford to send any credits. I caught one of the children when they tried to steal from me. Since meeting them, I've tried to help by taking the mother clothes to mend from some of the students here. They earn enough money that way to buy food. I would do more, but she won't except charity." 

"Won't the Mars government do anything?" 

"They did at the beginning, when it was big news. But after fighting to be independent, they would have riots if they raised taxes to support Earth's refugees. This family really is on their own." 

"And this would be a good story because?" He knew he was baiting her here. 

"They are only one of possibly hundreds of families in the same position. If we can bring their plight to the notice of the ordinary Martians, then perhaps with some pressure from some other quarters, we can get something done for all of them." 

"What other pressure is that?" Tim asked, aware that he might be treading on dodgy ground again. 

"I happen to know some important people." 

"Like the President of the Interstellar Alliance." 

Marie actually grinned a little. "He is one of them." She turned serious again. "The Alliance has wanted to help, but Mars Gov is too pig headed to take it. They prefer to ignore the problem." 

Tim sat back and thought for a moment, considering the prospects. 

"Well?" Marie asked after a full minute had passed in silence. 

"You may well have something there. When can I meet this family?" 

Marie gave him a genuine wide grin. "Tomorrow night."

OoOoOoOoO

Tim really didn't want to go back to that alley, even with the expert fighter that Marie obviously was. But the story did sound good, and he did owe her for rescuing him. 

He kept glancing around nervously as Marie stepped silently into the darkness. 

"Where did you come from last night?" Tim asked. He still couldn't see a door. 

"Look up." 

He did so. Five feet above him was a dark window. 

"Is that where they live? Isn't there another way in?" 

"There is a front door," Marie answered, "But this way attracts far less attention, which is best for everyone." 

"How are we going to get up there?" 

Marie just put her hands to her mouth and blew an owl hoot. 

"That's not going to attract attention then." Tim said with just a touch of sarcasm. 

"It's our signal. They'll drop a ladder down to us." 

When nothing happened, Marie repeated the signal, the hoot echoing ominously between the buildings. 

"That's strange." Marie muttered. 

"Perhaps they're not in." 

Marie shook her head. "They never go out after dark. There's too many gangs around." 

Tim was getting very nervous. "Look, there's nothing we can do. Can we go?" 

"Give me a push up." 

Before he knew what he was doing, Tim found himself with his back against the wall, fingers laced, letting Marie climb up on his shoulders. Seconds later, she had the window open and had scrambled through. Tim waited for the aforementioned ladder to be dropped down. It didn't appear. 

"Marie!" He hissed. He knew this was a bad idea. "Marie! What's happening?" 

A blonde head looked out of the window above him. 

"They're not here." Marie hissed back. "They've gone completely."

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

**Part 3**

A single glance around the small room was all Marie needed to show that it was unoccupied. The one bed was stripped and the mattress rolled up. None of the few possessions that had been in view the last time she had visited were evident. If it wasn't for the single bag in the middle of the floor, there would be nothing to show that anyone had lived there.

Spotting a folded note pinned to the top of the bag, Marie pulled out a torch from her pocket. Before she could read it though, a hiss came at her from the window.

"Marie! What's happening?"

Silently she cursed at herself. How could she have forgotten Tim in just ten seconds? Maybe she had just got too used to doing things by herself.

She leant out of the window, "They're not here. They've gone completely."

"Can you throw the ladder down?" Tim was looking around very nervously.

Less than a minute later, they were both in the room and looking at the note.

_Dear Marie, _It said, _Sorry to disappear on you but we couldn't stay here any more. We've joined Mother Earth. They say they'll give me work in exchange for somewhere to live. Thanks for your help. The last lot of clothes I mended are in the bag. Molly Walker.  
_  
"Well that is strange." Commented Tim.

Marie didn't answer. It was more than strange; it was downright worrying. She knew Molly had been getting more desperate, but she had always refused any charity that had been offered. Marie had heard no mention of Mother Earth before, so for them to seemingly come to the rescue in under twenty-four hours was definitely not right.

She slung the bag over her shoulder and turned to the window.

"Where are we going now?" Tim asked.

"Back to campus. I don't like this one bit. Do you have access to an archive in the journalism department?"

"Of course. Why.."

Marie didn't let him finish.

"Find out all you can about this Mother Earth. I'm going to do some digging from my end."

OoOoOoOoO

The door had chimed three or four times before Marie registered it. She allowed Tim entry without looking up from the screen of the computer terminal.

"Take a seat," she said, "I'm just in the middle of something here."

She didn't see Tim gingerly tiptoe over the numerous printouts scattered across the floor as she was once more intently staring at the screen, fingers flying over the keyboard. For the next few moments, the only sound was the clicking of keys, then,

"Gotchya!" Marie hissed in triumph.

"What have you got?" Tim leaned over her shoulder.

"I don't know yet," Marie tiredly rubbed the back of her neck, trying to relieve the stabbing pain she always got when she was hunched over a keyboard. "I've just managed to hack into the Mars National Bank high security accounts. Took me five minutes."

"Five minutes!"

"They have a very nasty security system, or it would have taken me two." She stretched the crick out of her shoulders, then noticed that Tim was looking at her with an expression of bewilderment and suspicion. "What?" she asked. What had she just said to unnerve him like that?

"Do you normally hack computers for fun?" He asked.

Oh no! He thought she was a criminal of some sort, or one of these people who write viruses. She'd forgotten once again that she wasn't on Minbar surrounded by people trained to do what she had just done.

"Sorry!" she apologised, then rushed on, "The Rangers taught me. I don't normally…"

Tim held up his hand, "It's alright." He said, although Marie wasn't sure it was, "I am just going to have to get used to the fact that you can do things most of us would never dream of. I suppose you can kill a man in ten seconds?"

"Six." Marie automatically corrected. Oh gosh, that made her sound like a murderer now. She was digging herself deeper by the minute. "I never have though…"

Her frantic explanation was cut short by Tim holding up both hands now and backing away slightly.  
"I don't want to know." He stated.

She really had no idea what to say. She found it hard enough to make friends, without scaring off a cute guy who was actually standing in her room.

She felt her eyes sting with tears. She couldn't cry now! Desperately fighting down the lump in her throat, she launched one last attempt "Tim.."

"No." Tim began again, paused, then with a deep breath continued "It's all right. It's just that I've never met anyone like you, so something like that is going to freak me out for a moment."

"I don't mean to…"

"I know." Tim stepped towards her.

Marie lowered her head, fearful that her shining eyes would betray how close she had come to losing it. She had worked too hard building up the image of a confident capable student, to let one disappointment wreck everything.

Two hands were placed gently on her shoulders.

"Look at me Marie."

Hesitantly, she looked up, unsure what she would see. Tim was looking into her eyes. No fear or disgust showed in them. Just a smile of friendship.

"You have skills," He said softly, "beyond most people. Never be ashamed of what you can do."

He squeezed her shoulders in encouragement and Marie replied with a tentative smile, not quite trusting her voice. Maybe here was someone who was willing to accept her for who she was. For the first time in a year, she didn't feel like she had to hide her true self to avoid being the misfit.

"So what is all this for?" Tim waved his hand at the paper-strewn floor.

Marie gratefully turned back to the computer terminal. With her back to Tim, she was able to wipe her eyes with her fingers and take a deep breath, hopefully without him seeing too much.

"This," Marie started to explain, "Is a paper trail. Follow the money, and you find the people. Luckily for me, Mother Earth has an easily found bank account." She grabbed a piece of paper off the floor and passed it to Tim. "Almost all those deposits on there are from individuals, private citizens. Some of the payments are legit, but it's the steady trickle to off-world companies that I followed."

She was on her hands and knees now, picking up printout after printout, retracing her steps through cyberspace.

"None of them are big enough to be noticed normally. We have money going to Vega, Proxima, Beta Durani, the Orion colonies, even the Drazi homeworld. Do you want to know the really interesting thing I found when I hacked them?"

Tim stared at the sheaf of paper in his hands, obviously not understanding the printed figures. It was a second before he registered Marie's question and refocused on her.

"What?"

Marie grinned. She'd forgotten how much she enjoyed infiltration.

"Every one of those companies is a front." She picked up her explanation again. "The money is turned around as soon as it arrives and is sent back to Mars, to the Mars National Bank high security accounts."

"Which you've just hacked." Tim finished.

Taking her seat once more at the computer, Marie scanned the accounts on the screen.

"There you are." She murmured to herself as she swiftly gained access to the one she wanted. Tim leaned in at her shoulder to see the information. He whistled.

"That's a lot of money."

"But it's not all from Mother Earth." Marie said, "See these deposits?" she pointed to various sets of numbers, "These are from somewhere new. And these payments; that's an awful lot of money going out to someone."

"Can you trace it?"

"Give me a few minutes."

And so she continued working, following the trail. The payments and the deposits were from the same company; a pharmaceutical. Investigating the company details, it appeared to be a small firm manufacturing a number of over the counter drugs.

"But their turnover doesn't account for the Mars money?" Marie thoughtfully stated.

"Unless it's a front for something else." Tim suggested. "Maybe drug running. Hide the operation behind a legit company; make it harder to find."

"A lie behind the truth." Marie agreed, "That is possible. But what is the connection with Mother Earth?" She paused for a moment, "Actually, what is Mother Earth? What did you find out?"

It was Tim's turn to grin. He had his own paper trail and opened a folder he had brought with him.

"It's a cult." He began, pulling out a number of newspaper articles. "It appeared a few months ago, after the quarantine was placed on Earth. They say they give a home and family to those who have lost theirs to the Drakh. It promises education for the children and work for all in return for the cult taking charge of their welfare. It hasn't gained much attention because unlike most cults, it doesn't advertise openly for new members. From what I can find, possible candidates have been approached individually."

"So far it's all feasible. What's the catch?"

"Well," Tim continued, "I looked into the guy who was running it, Daniel Boon. He has a decent enough background, or so he claims. I looked up any records from before the quarantine and found Daniel Boon. But he's still stuck on Earth."

"So who's this Daniel Boon?"

"Well, this took some digging, but I eventually got a photo of him. He's very secretive you know. Running it through the system, the most likely match is with a Don Boulden."

"And he is?"

"Was," Tim corrected, "A small time arms smuggler, dealing weapons with Free Mars during the riots a few years back."

Marie thought for a moment. If she had been worried before, this new information made her triply concerned for her friends.

"The biggest question," she said, "Is how come a Free Mars sympathiser is helping Earthers. Most of them wouldn't lift a finger if they were bleeding at their feet."

"Perhaps he's just going for the easiest source of money to fund whatever that company is hiding." Tim offered.

Marie nodded in agreement. "Then this Daniel is not really concerned about the welfare of those people." What had the Walkers got themselves unknowingly into? She had to help them! "We need to stop them."

In her head, she was mentally making a list of what she needed to do to put her plan in action, when an utterance from Tim broke her train of thought.

"Whoa!" He had his hands up again and a look of shock on his face. "What do you mean, stop them? We don't have anything here that could be used as evidence. You hacked into the Mars bank!"

"That's why we're going to join Mother Earth."

"Excuse me." It looked to Marie that Tim was on the verge of walking out. "Who's this we. I'm not one of your Rangers."

Well, maybe it would be better if she worked alone. She could accomplish the task quicker, and Tim wouldn't be in danger if she got caught. On the other hand, it was useful to have someone who could watch your back, and so far she had liked working with him.

"It's up to you of course." Marie decided to leave the decision to him. Mostly. "But you wanted a story for your project, and the inside view of the downfall of a cult I thought would be perfect. I can always tell you about it afterwards." She turned away from Tim and prayed that her 'Ivanova' manipulation skills had been well learnt.

It wasn't long before she heard an exasperated sigh.

"Fine. I'll come."

Marie grinned to herself. Her stomach had twisted in excitement when Tim had agreed, which was strange, as she shouldn't be looking forward to something this dangerous. She tried to centre herself as she had been taught in mediation class, but the feeling remained.

Later she would meditate. Now, she had to get everything prepared.

"What identity do you want?" She asked.

"Huh?"

"We can't go in just as ourselves." Marie explained. "We need to make up a history in case they check us out. What do you think; boyfriend and girlfriend, travelling around the galaxy until their money ran out and now they can't get back to Earth?"

"You can do that?"

"You said yourself, I can do a lot of things most other people can't." Marie settled herself for a long session at the computer terminal. She rubbed her neck again.

"That's the second time you've done that." Tim remarked.

"Bad posture." Marie replied, "But I usually concentrate so much I forget until it's too late. The pain's not that bad."

"I think I can help you there."

She felt Tim's hands settle on her shoulders. Marie was about to protest when his thumbs sought out her knotted muscles and proceeded to massage them, sending a shiver down her spine. All she managed was a groan of pleasure as the tension eased. Letting her head fall back, she gave in to his strong fingers and their rhythmic ministrations.

"Seem's I've found something I can do which you can't."

To be continued...


End file.
